The Earth on Your Shoulders
by Out of My Grasp
Summary: Nick Springfield. 17 years old. Resident of 318 Rochelle Avenue, Monroe, Lousiana. Special needs. Austism. And one of the 36. Feel the Earth's pain. Follow the threads. See the web Fate creates. Learn the truths. Be changed forever. For the 100 themes compilation...
1. Introduction

1. Introduction

The _Tzadikim Nistarim_. The _Lamed Vav_. The 36 Righteous Ones. Fabled to feel the pain of the Earth, and thought to be crucial to the survival of mankind. They are said to justify the purpose of humankind in the eyes of God, and if even one was missing, the world would cease to exist. In the eyes of the world, they are mythical, fabricated, the product of an overactive imagination. In my eyes, they are real. Very, very real.

I am Nick Springfield. I am 17 years, 3 months, and 209 days old. I am a _Tzadik Nistar_. I am one of the 36.

**A/N: I know it's short, but this story'll be a lot of short chapters. Like, maybe a hundred chapters. If I finish. **

**I saw a 100 Themes Challenge on this one website. I read over the topics, and I just thought, Someone could write a Touch fic with this. And then this came out. :/ **

**This is my first Touch fic, so p****lease let me know what you think and whether or not I should continue. It would mean a lot. :)**


	2. Love

2. Love

_There are almost 7 billion people on this Earth. They are split between 7 continents, and further separated by 7 oceans and almost 7,000 different languages._

_196 countries. Millions of cultures. Billions of individual personalities. All bound together with one thing._

_We have all been brushed by it, in one way or another. Whether it was the first touch of a mother, or the last breath to save a life, it is there._

_This is the nature of Love. It can fill the little cavities of time. It can drain life away. It can give people peace. It can drive people to insanity. It can save and destroy at the same time._

_It is the dimensions of love that draws people to it. It is the depth that drowns them, it is the wide expanse that overwhelms them. But they don't mind._

A boy is watching her. She's leaning over to pick up her little brother, who has just fallen off the swings. She bends over and kisses his scrapes, and the pain seems to disappear. She carries him back to their mother, who promptly begins fussing over him. They stand up and tell the girl they're leaving for home. She returns to the swings, rocking in the breeze. The boy steels himself to approach her, to talk to her.

Then the phone rings. She glances at the screen, grins, and brings it up to her ear. The smile that extends over her face is unmatched. "Hey," she says. The conversation makes her glow, even though she tries to hide it, giving vague and nonchalant answers. "Saturday sounds good," she says into the phone. "I can't wait. I'll see you then, Alex." She ends the call and her face lights up as the boy's face falls. He watches her walk away.

A game of chance. Taking and losing opportunities. An endless cycle of melting hearts and heartbreaks, of tenderness and ferocity. But that's love.


	3. Light

3. Light

_Ever since the dawn of time, organisms have struggled to contain light. The oldest known forms of life were chlorophyllic prokaryotes, designed to capture the sun's rays to turn into energy. Later, the Homo Erectus, the "upright man", discovered how to control fire for its own purposes. For decades, people lived in the sunlight by the day and have dwelled in the candlelight by night, until Thomas Edison invented the incandescent lightbulb in 1879._

_Mankind has always wanted power. And what could have more power than light itself? A wall of darkness, brewing for ages, can be struck down with a single pinprick of light. When a child is shaken awake by nightmares, it is the nightlight standing quietly in the corner that eases his fear and leads him back to sleep. It is light, pure light, that defeats the black of our lives and souls._

* * *

The choir girl breathes out heavily. Her eyes dance over the congregation, her nerves firing off warning signals every second. She has wanted a solo for so long, it has become a habitual ache. But now that the moment is here, she cannot help but want it to end.

A soft touch breaks her thoughts. Her mother smiles from behind her and whispers, "It's okay, Amber. It'll be alright."

The anticipation of the church reaches a peak as the organ starts, matching the energy of the storm raging outside. More chords ring out from the organ, and the girl shakily takes a breath as she opens her mouth to sing.

The lights flicker, fluttering, struggling to regain their strength, when the power goes out. The collective gasp of the audience comes and goes, leaving silence in the sanctuary. She can hear shuffling as children blindly fumble for their parents, the hushes of mothers and the low reassuring voices of fathers, quiet footsteps looking for flashlights.

The beams quiver into existence, the faces of the people illuminated by their soft glow. The apprehension is evident, the fear palpable. A single whimper escapes a child's lips and fades into silence.

An old woman starts to sing. Her voice is weak, raspy, but infallible as it carries the notes.

_This little light of mine_

_I'm gonna let it shine_

The girl slowly joins in, the two melodies melting into each other to create one.

_This little light of mine_

_I'm gonna let it shine_

Other voices blend in, the harmonies weaving a wall to block out the evil of the storm.

_This little light of mine_

_I'm gonna let it shine_

A child's joyful cry breaks the solemnity, and the tune transforms into an unearthly fusion of joy and wonder and peace.

_Let it shine, let it shine_

_Let it shine_

* * *

The boy sits alone in the forest. He is no older than five or six, but he is still in his solitude. The storm rages around him, the darkness closing in on him. Fear grips his soul, but he curls up, determined to protect himself.

A bolt of lightning flashes across the sky, followed by a shattering roll of thunder. The boy rocks back and forth, singing to himself in his broken, off key voice.

_This little light of mine_

_I'm gonna let it shine_

The music from his Sunday school class echoes in his head, and he struggles to keep the song with his beat. He gives in to despair, constantly repeating those ten words to himself.

Above the thunder and the clatter of the rain, a single roar bursts out like a sonic boom. "Noah!" it shouts, constant as the repetitive beat of the storm. The boy picks out a single beam in the pitch dark, and he heads towards it. The gravity towards this light is strong, and the boy runs with ever strengthening legs as he gets closer.

"Alex! Alex!" he calls, throwing himself at his brother. He cries into his shoulder, desperate to hide his face from the storm raging around him.

"It's okay, Noah," Alex says gently, picking him up and carrying him home. "It'll be alright."

* * *

**A/N: So please let me know if you want me to continue. I really like this idea, but I want to know what you think. Just drop a review in that magical box, and let me know. :D**


End file.
